Hierarchical spectrum coordination

ABSTRACT

Examples disclosed herein relate to efficient hierarchical radio frequency (RF) spectrum assigning across both licensed and unlicensed frequencies in a given area. Wireless devices in the area are detected by a spectrum manager, which also detects all available RF frequencies that are available. Conditional, relative, or absolute RF assignment rules received by an administrator or from an administrative device dictate the allocation conditions for assigning wireless devices to different frequencies, channels, channel widths, bands, durations, or other specifics of the available RF frequencies. Alternatively, RF spectra may be assigned reactively based on the current, historical, or future network usage on the available network frequencies.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S.application Ser. No. 15/004,849, entitled “Hierarchical SpectrumCoordination,” filed on Jan. 22, 2016, which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety for all intents and purposes.

BACKGROUND

All wireless technologies use the airwaves to transmit and receiveinformation. To allow many different technologies to communicatesimultaneously, wireless spectrum is carved up into chunks of frequencybands, with radio frequency (RF) in particular lying in the range of 3kHz to 300 GHz. RF bands in a given area may be either licensed orunlicensed, and an enterprise may have access to both. For licensedbands, entities generally pay a fee—or otherwise obtain rights—for theexclusive rights to transmit on assigned channels of specific bands in ageographic region. In unlicensed bands, virtually anyone followingparticular transmission protocols may transmit data across the bandswithout having to pay licensing fees. Licensing is generally veryimpractical for certain device uses, such as for smaller wirelessdevices that yet remains available in most regions. However, the factthat virtually any device may transmit in unlicensed space causesinterference and problems in areas with numerous wireless devices orduring times of high network traffic. As wireless technologies becomemore prolific, enterprises—or groups of enterprises—need to managemultiple, sometimes contentious, wireless infrastructures within a givengeographic area.

Wireless device traffic largely depends on the particular applicationsbeing performed on the devices in a given location. Streaming a videochat requires much more bandwidth than communicating e-mails. Thefrequencies an enterprise has licensed may quickly be consumed duringpeak hours, and services the enterprise has earmarked for the licensedfrequencies may suffer interference or performance degradation ifnetwork capacity is not appropriately allocated to the wireless devicesin the area.

Some enterprises have proprietary radio management solutions that managedevices within a single spectrum range. For example, wireless vendorssometimes have software that automatically assigns access points in awireless infrastructure to different channels. Such solutions are veryfocused in scope to their own solution and devices. If an administratordeploys non-cooperating devices (e.g., wireless security cameras andwireless projection receivers), the two sets of devices may operateindependently and unknowingly compete for the same airspace. Theresultant interference may degrade the performance of groups of devices.

SUMMARY

The disclosed examples are described in detail below with reference tothe accompanying drawing figures listed below. The below Summary isprovided to illustrate some examples disclosed herein. It is not meant,however, to limit all examples to any particular configuration orsequence of operations.

Some examples disclosed herein are directed to efficiently managingavailable spectrum for cooperating and non-cooperating wireless devicesin a given area using an intelligent spectrum manager. The spectrummanager detects the wireless devices in the area, either throughintermediary network access devices providing network connectivity towireless devices or directly from the wireless devices themselves. Thenetwork access devices and/or the wireless devices may be configured totransmit RF spectrum requests indicating particular network usagerequirements of the wireless devices to the spectrum manager. RF spectraassignment rules, received from enterprise administrators or based onnetwork usage, are stores on the spectrum manager and executed therebyto allocate the RF spectrum to the requesting wireless devices. The RFspectra assignment rules assign portions of available RF spectra in thearea to particular wireless devices. Based on the RF spectra assignmentrules and the RF spectrum requests, the spectrum manager allocatesportions of the RF spectra to the wireless devices and accordinglynotifies the wireless devices of the assignments. The notified wirelessdevices may then tune to the frequency, band, channel, or other RFparameter of the so-allocated RF spectra. The various examples disclosedherein provide the ability to efficiently allocate licensed andunlicensed portions of available RF spectrum in an area, regardless ofwhether devices are cooperating with each other.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosed examples are described in detail below with reference tothe accompanying drawing figures listed below:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a wireless environment managed by aspectrum manager.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a wireless deviceconfigured to broadcast network resource needs to a spectrum manager.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a spectrum manager configured to allocatespectrum to wireless devices.

FIGS. 4-5 are flow chart diagrams illustrating work flows forimplementing effective spectrum allocation.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding partsthroughout the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The various embodiments will be described in detail with reference tothe accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numberswill be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.References made throughout this disclosure relating to specific examplesand implementations are provided solely for illustrative purposes but,unless indicated to the contrary, are not meant to limit all examples.

Examples disclosed herein generally relate to automated management of RFspectrum consumption within a geographic area by identifying availablenetwork licensed and unlicensed network resources in the area andintelligently allocating spectrum to wireless devices based on thenetwork usage requirements of the devices. To do so, the spectrummanager monitors the RF spectra in a given area, identifying whichportions are available for device consumption and which portions arecurrently being used. The spectrum manager receives the RF spectrumrequests from the wireless devices, either directly or throughintermediary network access devices (e.g., wireless access points,wireless controller, or other network management system). The RFspectrum requests indicate network usage requirements of cooperating andnon-cooperating wireless devices in the area, such as, for example butwith limitation, particular frequencies, bands, channels, utilization,network availability, or any other RF parameter. The RF spectrumrequests may be communicated to the spectrum manager through networkaccess devices providing connectivity to the wireless devices ordirectly from the wireless devices themselves. The spectrum manageranalyzes the available spectra and received network usage requirementsof the wireless devices and allocates spectra to the wireless devicesbased on RF spectra assignment rules, or in reaction to current networkusage and/or interference.

Whether RF consumption needs of the devices are provided directly fromthe wireless devices or through network access devices, the spectrummanager, in some examples, assigns wireless devices in the area toparticular RF spectra based on the requested data consumption needs ofthe devices and RF spectra availability. Specific devices (e.g., gamingconsoles, servers, security cameras, etc.) may be assigned to particularRF frequencies, bands, channels, channel widths, transmission timedurations, or the like in a predetermined setting set by anadministrator, e.g., in a dedicated manner specifying that particulartypes of devices are to exclusively use a certain frequency band.

Alternatively or additionally, the spectrum manager may reactivelyassign or reassign devices to particular spectra based on the currentnetwork consumption across all or a subset of the available RF spectrain the area. For example, a wireless device (e.g., smart phone)scheduled to use a particular band and RF frequency may be switched toanother band and RF frequency upon detection by the spectrum managerthat the original band is busy (e.g., exceeds threshold amounts traffic)or some other condition. While discussed in more detail below, some ofthe conditions that may be used to reactively assign devices to wirelessspectrum include, for example but without limitation, changes to thespectrum, detection that other devices are requesting the same spectrum,priority of device or application (e.g., video telecast devices may needfaster, less-congested spectrum than messaging applications), or thelike.

In some examples, the spectrum manager manages spectrum allocationacross both licensed and the unlicensed spectra in a given area or for aparticular enterprise. For example, Company ABC may have obtained aparticular portion of licensed RF spectrum in a particular locality.Unlicensed spectra may also be available for use in that area as well.The spectrum manager, in some examples, identifies all available spectrathat can be allocated—both licensed and unlicensed—and then assignsavailable spectrum to requesting devices, either in real time orprospectively for future use.

This disclosure frequently refers to cooperating and non-cooperatingdevices. Cooperating and non-cooperating wireless devices may be anytype of wireless communicating device, such as, for example but withoutlimitation, a smart phone, tablet, laptop, gaming console, server,virtual machine, television, projector, wearable device, industrialcomponent, control circuitry, or the like.

Specifically, a “cooperating device” refers to a wireless deviceconfigured to coordinate its data consumption with another wirelessdevice. Cooperating devices may communicate via an auxiliary controlchannel (e.g., a dedicated channel) within a locality, enabling thecooperating devices to organize their spectrum usage. For example, acooperating gaming console may identify that a collection of servers inan area are scheduled to transmit data on a particular band in afrequency range. The gaming console, knowing the data consumptionrequirements and channel of the servers, may alternatively transmitacross a different channel in an effort to eliminate the possibility ofinterference between the disparate devices.

A “non-cooperating device” refers to a wireless device that does notcoordinate its data consumption with another wireless device. Forexample, a smart phone may not know the transmission channels orfrequencies of networked televisions, and may therefore go ahead andtransmit data across the same band or frequency.

In some examples, the presence of cooperating and/or non-cooperatingdevices in an area is detected upon transmission of network accessrequests from the devices themselves to a spectrum manager. Thesenetwork access requests, in some examples, include network requirementinformation of the wireless devices. The spectrum manager uses receivednetwork access requests from the wireless devices to optimize thenetwork consumption in a given area. More specifically, network accessrequests may include, for example but without limitation, an indicationof RF bands, channels, channel widths, transmission time durations,device location (both current and predictive), current status, or othermetric specific to wireless device data transmission. For example, agaming console may request to access to 40 MHz of wireless spectrum inthe 2.4/5.0 GHz range with at least 20% utilization either currently orat some predetermined timeframe in the future.

Having generally described at least some of the examples disclosedherein, attention is now drawn to the accompanying drawings foradditional support. FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a wirelessenvironment 100. Wireless environment 100 includes a variety of sourcesproviding RF signals, including, for example but without limitation, aradio tower 104, a base station tower 106, and a satellite 108. Aspectrum manager 150 allocates RF spectrum in the area to a collectionof wireless devices 110-120, either directly or through one or morenetwork access devices 102 a-102 n.

Sources 104-108 are provided merely as examples of different sources ofavailable RF spectrum sources in a particular location. Morespecifically, radio tower 104 may generate RF signals, including AM andFM radio signals. Base station 106 may be a cellular base station thatgenerates cellular signals, e.g., Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA),Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), 3G, 3G-long termevolution (3G-LTE), 4G, signals, or the like. Satellite 108 may includecommunication satellites or GPS satellites and may generate satelliteradio, television, GPS, or other types of RF signals.

The various sources 104-108 may be assigned frequency bands, powerlimitations, or other restrictions, requirements, and/or licenses by agovernment spectrum control entity, such as the Federal CommunicationsCommission (FCC), or otherwise remain unlicensed. Some of the examplesdisclosed herein provide enterprises the ability to operate, in essence,as their own RF-regulatory entity by managing the available licensed andunlicensed RF spectrum in an area in a manner that meets the RF demandsof the area's devices.

Wireless devices 110-120 include security cameras 110, a laptop 112, asmart phone 114, a projector 116, a server 118, and a virtual machine120. The depicted wireless devices 110-120 represent only a smallfraction of the network devices in a given area. One skilled the artwill understand that numerous additional and alternative devices mayrequest and be assigned RF spectrum using the examples disclosed herein.Moreover, reference is made throughout this disclosure of “wireless”devices that are requesting wireless network access. Examples are notlimited to providing RF spectrum only to wireless devices. Devicesconnected to a network access device or to spectrum manager 150 may alsobe assigned RF spectrum by the examples discussed herein. Therefore, thewireless devices disclosed herein include any wired devices attemptingto gain network access.

The spectrum manager 150 detects the available RF spectrum generatedfrom the various sources 104-108 in a given area. RF signaling andenergy in the wireless environment 100 may be measured across a widespectrum, and different available RF signals may be present forallocation by the spectrum manager 150 to wireless devices 110-120 thatare also detected in the geographic area. In some examples, the spectrummanager 150 is configured to search and identify available frequencies,bands, channels, channel widths, transmission timeframes, or the likefor use in the wireless environment 100 under certain conditions (e.g.,day of week, time of day, power level, frequency band, frequencychannel, utilization, congestion, times, location, etc.). In thismanner, the entire available RF spectrum, including both licensed andunlicensed frequencies, are identified in the wireless environment 100,network access for the cooperating and non-cooperating wireless devices110-120 in the locale is managed by the spectrum manager 150, and may beautomatically detected by the spectrum manager 150 and/or manuallyspecified by an administrator.

Wireless devices 110-120 are shown in FIG. 1 as security cameras 110,personal computers 114, smart phones 114, projectors 116, servers 118,and virtual machines 120 (represented as a dotted-outlined server).These devices may be cooperating or non-cooperating with each other.Also, the depicted wireless devices 110-120 represent only a smallfraction of the wireless devices that may be managed by the spectrummanager examples disclosed herein. Virtually any wireless communicativedevice may be managed using the spectra-assignment components andtechniques disclosed herein. Examples include, without limitation,wireless gaming controllers, computer peripherals (e.g., mice,keyboards), headphones, sensors (e.g., used in an Internet of Things(IOT) configuration), printers, copiers, fax machines, televisions,climate control devices, security devices, lighting, and any otherdevice configured to communicate data using RF signals.

Network access devices 102 a-n provide network connectivity to some ofthe wireless devices 110-114 in particular areas. Other devices 116-118may interact directly with the spectrum manager 150 to receive spectraallocation, either through a cellular connection, radio link,point-to-point connection, or some other direct connection.

The spectrum manager 150 may be implemented as a standalone device, as acontroller or processor embedded within another computing or networkingdevice, as a virtual machine (VM) operating across multiple disparatedevices, as a remote server in a cloud-based service, or in anotherprocessing configuration equipped to identify and allocate licensed andunlicensed spectra to wireless devices in a given area. In operation,the spectrum manager 150 enables an enterprise to identify andefficiently use all available licensed and unlicensed RF spectraavailable in a given area, thereby reducing network interference andcommunication degradation. Additionally, the spectrum manager 150'sefficient allocation of network resources ensures that more wirelessdevices have access to available RF spectra when they need it and do nothave to continually wait for licensed or unlicensed frequencies toclear.

An administrator 160 may control spectra assignments by providing thespectrum manager 150 with particular RF spectra assignment rules thatspecify how RF resources are to be assigned to the wireless devices110-120. The administrator 160 may specify that particular types ofdevices, actual devices, or collections of devices may be assigned tospecific RF resources, e.g., frequencies, channels, bands, utilization,etc. The administrator 160 may also specify the absolute, relative,conditional or reactive RF assignment rules discussed in more detailbelow.

Wireless devices 110-120 and/or sources 104-108 in a given geographicarea may be manually identified to the spectrum manager 150 by anadministrator 160. Alternatively, the devices 110-120 may beautomatically detected by the spectrum manager 150 from RF spectrumrequests received from the wireless devices 110-120 or their respectivenetwork access devices 102 a-n. The spectrum manager 150 allocates RFspectrum to the devices based on their requested resource needs, theavailable spectra, and the RF assignment rules provided by theadministrator 160 or an administrative device. Alternatively, theadministrator 160 may resource need information for any of the devices110-120—manually to the spectrum manager 150. The wireless devices110-120 may be represented or otherwise indicated to the spectrummanager 150 according to media control (MAC) address, machine name(e.g., John's phone), Internet Protocol (IP) address (IP),username/password, user profile, device type (e.g., gaming console,virtual reality headset, etc.), or any other device indicator.

Again, the spectrum manager 150, in some examples, controls spectrummanagement for both cooperating and non-cooperating wireless devices. Inthis vein, cooperating and non-cooperating devices transmit requestsindicating their network consumption needs to the spectrum manager 150,and the spectrum manager, having access to all available RF spectra inan area, allocates RF spectrum to the devices accordingly, or based onadministrative conditions, business rules, or network availability.Knowing the requested network needs of the wireless devices enables thespectrum manager 150 to more efficiently allocate network resources todevices that would not normally coordinate network access efforts. Forexample, if projector 116 is non-cooperating with server 118,conventional environments that do not employ the spectrum manager 150may allocate the same network resources to both devices if the tworequest the same RF access. Whereas, the disclosed examples provide away to assign one of the devices to a different network RF frequency,channel, band, etc. that what one of the devices requested in order toreduce the chance of the two interfering with each other.

The spectrum manager 150 may obtain spectrum data over a wide range ofwireless communication protocols (e.g., Transmission ControlProtocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) or the like). Additionally, thespectrum manager 150 may, in some examples, acquire data from and senddata to database depositories that may be used by a plurality ofspectrum managers 150 and/or wireless devices for spectrum allocationpurposes. Such examples provide an extensible framework that allows thedevices themselves to understand the current, future, and historicnetwork traffic consumption across the entire RF network in a givenarea, and responsively tailor network-access requests based on suchdata. For example, if laptop 112 is set to request 20 MHz of spectrum inthe 2.4 GHz frequency, the spectrum manager 150 may be configured,through administrator-set conditions or predetermined business rules, toallocate the requesting laptop 112—from a particular user or allpersonal computing devices in general—to the 5 GHz frequency on band 40and at a consumption of 15 MHz. Thus, the spectrum manager 150 isflexible and may be configured to grant access to specific networkdemands of requesting wireless devices or identify RF spectrum for thedevices based administrator conditions; business rules; or current,future, and historical network usage.

In some examples, the spectrum manager 150 manages spectrum informationbased on frequency, bandwidth, channels, utilization, signal power,time, modulation type, geo-location, classification, format, andlocation of signal propagation. More specifically, spectrum utilizationmay be indicated as an absolute percentage (e.g., 20% of channel 20), arelative percentage (e.g., 50% of the unused utilization on a givenchannel), a fractional percentage (e.g., ⅓ of channel 30), or as aconditional percentage (e.g., if the security cameras 110 are providedwith 10% utilization on channel 5, then smart phones 114 are providedwith 15% of the utilization on channel 5 or some other measure). Theexamples disclosed herein may similarly vary the other delineatednetwork parameters in the same absolute, relative, or conditional ways,thereby ensuring that the spectrum manager 150 is a flexible devicecapable of dynamically managing the network demands across a wholecollection of RF spectra.

In operation, the spectrum manager 150 detects the available licensedand unlicensed RF spectra in the given area, and assigns spectra towireless devices in the area, either upon request, upon administrativeassignment, upon business rules, in response to current or futurenetwork consumption, or a combination thereof. To illustrate the latter(i.e., examples that respond to current or future network consumption),in some examples, the spectrum manager 150 analyzes the networkcongestion on all (or a set) of the available RF spectrum andresponsively assigns specific devices to specific spectra based oncurrent, future, and/or historic network availability, reliability,speed, or other connectivity metric. For example, the servers 118 may beoperating an enterprise's cloud-hosting business that needs to bereliable and not commingled with third party traffic; yet, that thatdoes not necessarily provide the fastest network connection.

The spectrum manager 150 may allocate portions of available spectrum tothe servers 118 that are licensed by the enterprise (i.e., reliable andsecure) but that have more congestion than other portions of thelicensed spectrum, because speed is not necessarily an important factorfor such devices. In the same vein, projectors 116 that provide asimulcast or telepresence service may need faster connection speeds,prompting the spectrum manager 150 to allocate less congested portionsof the available spectra.

In some examples, the spectrum manager 150 allocates devices 110-120 toavailable spectra according to administrative conditions, businessrules, available wireless resources, and the network needs of thedevices. An administrator 160, or administrative computing device, mayupload various conditions and business rules dictating which devices areassigned to different portions of spectra. For example,non-enterprise-owned mobile tablets must be allocated to unlicensedfrequency bands and channels. Security devices (e.g., networked securitycameras 110) may be allocated to a particular portion of an enterprise'slicensed spectra. Gaming devices may be given more allocation freedomand assigned to any available spectra—licensed or unlicensed—that canmeet particular threshold gaming criteria (e.g., bandwidth, transmissionspeeds, utilization, congestion, etc.). These are but a few examplesprovided to aid the reader, and are not meant to be an exhaustive list.Virtually any combination of networking requirements and configurationsmay be contemplated by the spectrum manager 150 when assigning RFspectrum to wireless devices.

In some examples, the spectrum controller 150 acts as the centralizedintelligence that makes decisions pertaining to spectrum usage planning,managing and coordinating spectrum resource usage of all—cooperating andnon-cooperating—wireless devices 110-120 within a locality. To be clear,a “locality” or “area” refers to a physical geographic area wherecooperating and non-cooperating wireless devices 110-120 reside ortransmit RF signals. Locality may also include the cooperating andnon-cooperating devices under an enterprise's control, even though suchdevices may not be within a particular geographic area. In this manner,locality also includes an “enterprise domain,” referring to theparticular cooperating and non-cooperating devices being managed by theenterprise.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a wireless device200 configured to broadcast network resource needs to a spectrum manager150. The mobile computing includes a processor 202, an input/output(I/O) interface 204, and a memory area 206. More specifically, thememory area 206 stores machine-executable instructions and data that mayinclude an operating system 208, various applications 210, policies 212,a communications interface component 214, a user interface component216, network requirements 218, and network configurations 220. Themobile computing device 100 may communicate across a public, private, orhybrid network 202. Any of the wireless devices 110-120, as well as thenetwork access devices 102 a-n when operating as intermediary devices,may take the form of wireless device 200. The depicted wireless device200 is but one example of a suitable computing environment and is notintended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of the disclosed examples. Alternative or additionalcomponents may be used in other examples.

The wireless device 200 may take the form of a mobile computing device,a wearable device, a smart phone, a mobile tablet, a laptop, a personalcomputer, a virtual machine, a server, a security device, a networkedtelevision or projector, a peripheral device, an industrial device, avirtual reality device, a portable media player, an electronic sensor(e.g., for use in an IOT configuration), or any other type of electroniccomponent accessible over the network 222. The wireless device 200 mayalso include less portable devices such as desktop personal computers,tabletop devices, industrial control devices, wireless chargingstations, gaming consoles, servers, electric automobile chargingstations, control systems, network access device (e.g., WLAN controller,WI-FI beacon, etc.), and the like. Additionally, the wireless device 100may represent a group of processors 202 that are communicatively coupledbut remotely located.

The processor 202 may include one or more processing units that areprogrammed to execute computer-executable instructions for implementingaspects of the disclosure. The instructions may be performed by theprocessor 202 or by multiple processors within the wireless device 200,or performed by a processor 102 external to the wireless device 200. Insome examples, the operations illustrated in accompanying flow charts inFIGS. 4-5 may be implemented as software instructions encoded on acomputer-readable medium, in hardware programmed or designed to performthe operations, or both.

Moreover, in some examples, the processor 202 represents animplementation of analog techniques to perform the operations describedherein. For example, the operations may be performed by an analogcomputing device and/or a digital computing device, or the operationsmay be implemented by a system on a chip (SoC) or other circuitry (e.g.,a plurality of interconnected, electrically conductive elements).Further still, the processor 202 may operate in a virtualizedenvironment.

The I/O interface 204 may include a transceiver for wirelesscommunication (e.g., WI-FI®, BLUETOOTH®, near-field communication (NFC),or other types of communication), an input port for wired (e.g.,Ethernet, universal serial bus (USB)) connection, or the like. Oneskilled in the art will appreciate and understand that differentwireless devices 200 include various I/O interfaces 204 andcorresponding circuitry.

The memory area 206 includes any quantity of computer-storage mediaassociated with or accessible by the wireless device 200. The memoryarea 206 may be internal to the wireless device 200 (as shown in FIG.2), external to the wireless device 200 (not shown), or both (notshown). Examples of memory in the memory area 206 include, withoutlimitation, random access memory (RAM); read only memory (ROM);electronically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM); flashmemory or other memory technologies; CDROM, digital versatile disks(DVDs) or other optical or holographic media; magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices;memory wired into an analog computing device; or any other medium forencoding desired information and be accessed by the wireless device 200.Such memory may also take the form of volatile and/or nonvolatilememory; may be removable, non-removable, or a combination thereof; andmay include various hardware devices (e.g., solid-state memory, harddrives, optical-disc drives, etc.). For the purposes of this disclosure,however, “computer storage media” does not include carrier waves orpropagating signaling.

The operating system 208 is executed by the processor 202 and controlsoperational aspects of the wireless device 200. The applications 210,when executed by the processor 202, perform software or hardwarefunctions on the wireless device 200. Examples of applications 224include, without limitation, mail application programs, web browsers,text editors, spreadsheet programs, calendar application programs,gaming programs, address book application programs, messaging programs,security applications, banking applications, virtual-realityapplications, telecast/telepresence applications, media applications,location-based services, search programs, mobile applications, and thelike. The applications 210 may communicate with counterpart applications210 or services on other wireless device 200, such as web servicesaccessible via the network 222 or via a peer-to-peer connection.

In some examples, the wireless device 200 communicates over network 222.Examples of computer networks 222 include, without limitation, awireless local area network (WLAN), a local area network (LAN), a widearea network (WAN), or the like. The network 222 may also comprisesubsystems that transfer data between servers or wireless device 200.For example, the network 222 may also include a point-to-pointconnection, the Internet, an Ethernet, a backplane bus, an electricalbus, a neural network, or other internal system.

The memory area 208 may also be configured to store various devicepolicies 212. These may include, for example but without limitation,control access levels to various processing or memory resources of thewireless device 200. Additionally or alternatively, the policies 212 maycontrol or restrict the type of data communicated to or received by thewireless device 200 over the network 222. For example, restrictions oncontent, access to shared networked documents, and corporate accesspolicies may all be implemented stored as policies 212.

In some examples, the communications interface component 214 includes anetwork interface card and/or computer-executable instructions (e.g., adriver) for operating a network interface card that provides access tothe network 222. Communication between the computing device 200 andother devices over the network 222 may occur using any protocol ormechanism over any wired or wireless connection. In some examples, thecommunications interface is operable with short-range communicationtechnologies such as by using near-field communication (NFC) tags,BLUETOOTH® brand communications tags, or the like. Examples of networktransfer protocols include, for example but without limitation, thehypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), file transfer protocol (FTP), simpleobject access protocol (SOAP), or the like. Requests and responses maybe passed as different markup language messages—e.g., extensible markuplanguage (XML), hypertext markup language (HTML), or the like—or asparameters for scripting languages. One skilled in the art willappreciate that numerous scripting languages may be used by differentdistributed applications, a list of which, while not exhaustive,includes JAVASCRIPT® brand scripts, personal home page (PHP), or thelike. Examples are not limited to any particular communication protocol,message language, or scripting language, as one skilled in the art willappreciate that different languages and protocols may be used tointeract with distributed applications.

In some examples, the user interface component 216 includes a graphicscard for displaying data to the user and receiving data from the user.The user interface component 216 may also include computer-executableinstructions (e.g., a driver) for operating the graphics card. Further,the user interface component 216 may include a display (e.g., a touchscreen display or natural user interface) and/or computer-executableinstructions (e.g., a driver) for operating the display. The userinterface component 216 may also include one or more of the following toprovide data to the user or receive data from the user: speakers, asound card, a camera, a microphone, a vibration motor, one or moreaccelerometers, joysticks, scanners, printers, a BLUETOOTH® brandcommunication module, global positioning system (GPS) hardware, and aphotoreceptive light sensor. For example, the user may input commands ormanipulate data by moving the computing device 200 in a particular way.

The network requirements 218 specify particular network usagerequirements of the wireless device 200. These may include particularfrequency levels, bands, bandwidths, transmission time lengths,modulation, code hopping, or other specifics about the RF signaling thewireless device 200 needs to for communication. The network requirements218 may also indicate the use type of the device 200 (e.g., videotransmission, audio streaming, text-based messaging, etc.), the locationof the device 200 (historically, currently, or prospectively), the dateand time of the requested network access (currently or prospectively),frequencies, bands, channels, spread spectrum parameters (e.g., channelwidth), intended utilization (e.g., data rates or throughputrequirements), current utilization, traffic priority (e.g., Quality ofService (QoS) capabilities), vendor-specific information, and the like.Additionally or alternatively, network requirements 218 may includespecific capabilities of the spectra detector 306, including, forexample but without limitation: RF bands, channels, bandwidth, ormodulations that are supported; device types or restrictions; protocolssupported; protocol parameters supported; and non-RF capabilities.Additionally or alternatively, network requirements 218 may include moregeneral information, including, for example but without limitation:physical locations, owners, unique identifiers, friendly identifiers,previous allocation instructions from the spectrum manager 150, devicetypes, peer spectrum manager identifiers (e.g., a wireless device mayhave been previously given instructions for a peer spectrum manager150), and the like. Any combination of these requirements may bepackaged into network requests submitted by the wireless device 200 tothe spectrum manager 150.

The RF access requests from the wireless devices may indicate any of theaforesaid network requirements 218. For example, the RF access requestsmay also specify, for example but without limitation: RF bands,channels, bandwidth, modulation type, protocol, protocol parameters,usage type, date/time for using requested RF resources, utilization(e.g., absolute, conditional, relative, etc.), priority, status (e.g.,whether the wireless device may be able to provide status on bands andchannels it is using or not using), RF spectra utilization, RFinterference, and the like. More specifically, in some examples, thewireless devices 110-120 include in the RF spectrum requests informationpertaining to the state of the available RF resources to the resourcedetector 310 or the spectra detector 306. For example, an RF spectrumrequest may specify the current utilization of a particular channel orband in an RF spectrum request, indicating to the resource detector 310network usage information detected by the wireless devices 110-120themselves. This allows the wireless devices 110-120 to serve not onlyas requesters and consumers of the network resources but also monitorsand network usage, in some examples.

In some examples, the wireless device 200 requests access to RF spectrumfrom the spectrum manager 150 by submitting a request with a collectionof the network requirements 218 to the spectrum manager 150. As detailedmore below in relation to FIG. 3, the spectrum manager 150 determinesavailable RF spectrum for the wireless device 200—either throughindependent detection by the spectrum manager 150 or from network usageinformation provided by the wireless devices or network access devices102 a-n—to use based on the network requirements 218 submitted in therequest from the wireless device, allocates a portion of RF spectrum tothe wireless device 200, and transmits the allocated RF spectrum back tothe wireless device 200. The parameters of the allocated RF spectrum arethen stored and used as the network configurations 220 for tuning thetransceiver to transmit data accordingly.

Alternatively, the network requirements 218 may not be communicated bythe wireless device 200 directly to the spectrum manager 150. Instead,an administrator 160 may set the network device configurations for thewireless device 200 on the spectrum manager 150. For example, theadministrator 160 may designate that all telepresence projectors are touse channel 40 at 5 GHz with a utilization of 30%, and that all smartphones are to use channels 5, 10, or 20 at 2.4 GHz frequency, and so on.Setting the network requirements beforehand enables an enterprise tocontrol the RF spectrum for some of its more important devices.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a spectrum manager 150 configured toallocate RF spectrum to wireless devices 110-120. The spectrum managerincludes one or more processors 302, an I/O interface 304, a spectradetector 306, an administrative interface (admin interface) 308, aresource detector 310, a resource allocator 312, and a memory area 314.The depicted spectrum manager 150 is but one example of a suitablecomputing environment and is not intended to suggest any limitation asto the scope of use or functionality of the disclosed examples.Alternative or additional components may be used in other examples.

The I/O interface 304 may include a transceiver or hard-wired connectionand may operate at a predetermined dedicated channel, such that allcooperating and non-cooperating wireless devices 200 are programmed toor learn to communicate at that channel. New cooperating andnon-cooperating wireless devices 200 coming into the geographic reach ofthe spectrum manager 150 may then communicate with the spectrum manager150 through the I/O interface 304. The I/O interface 304 may be capableof multiple dedicated channels, allowing cooperating and non-cooperatingwireless devices 200 to attempt communication across all dedicatedchannels until a connection is made. That way, if any RF interferenceaffects the quality of any of the communication channels with thespectrum manager, a different channel may be used. An ad-hoc multi-hopnetwork may form the backbone communication of the channel, and a simplecommunication protocol for low transceiver complexity may be used toreduce the amount of traffic generated through communications betweenthe wireless devices 200 and the spectrum manager 150.

The spectra detector 306, admin interface 308, resource detector 310,and resource allocator 312 may be implemented in hardware, circuitry,software, firmware, or a combination thereof. In operation, the spectradetector 306 detects the available RF spectrum 338 in a given area. Asshown, the detected RF spectrum 338 may include both unlicensed RF andlicensed RF that are available for use in a given geographic location.For example, an enterprise (such as business) may have licensed aparticular spectrum for use within a given locale, and unlicensed bandsmay also be readily available in the area as well. The spectra detector306 may detect both. Moreover, the spectra detector 306 stores thedetected available spectrum 316 in the memory area 314.

The admin interface 308 is a front-end interface that receives businessrules 328 and manual spectra allocations 330 from an administrator 160or an administrative device 336. Collectively, the business rules 328and the manual spectra allocations 330 are referred to as “RF spectraassignment rules.” In some examples the admin interface 308 is a userinterface (UI) that the administrator 160 may manually enter thebusiness rules 328 or manual allocations 330. In other examples, theadmin interface 308 is an API access point that allows the administrator160 or administrative device 336 to send the business rules 328 ormanual allocations 330. In still other examples, the admin interface iscombination of both APIs and UIs.

The received business rules 328 and manual spectra allocations 330 arestored in the memory area 314. More specifically, the admin interface308 may a UI for a user to selectively assign spectra to individualcooperating and non-cooperating devices 200 in an area, or collectivelyallocate spectra to different types of devices 200. For example, theadministrator 160 may reserve a portion of spectra (e.g., 40 MHz of the2.4 GHz with 30% utilization on bands 20, 30, or 35) to a company'sservers that are hosting a particular massively multiplayer onlinerole-playing game (MMORPG), and the administrator 160 may also designatethat all WI-FI® connected smart phones be allocated to unlicensedspectra in the 5 GHz range.

The business rules 328 include RF spectra assignment rules thatdesignate absolute, relative, or conditional rules for assigningspectra. These RF spectra assignment rules may be absolute, relative,conditional, or reactive. Absolute rules may include general assignmentsfor all devices in a particular group or specific devices themselves,e.g., if a Company ABC tablet, then allocate at least 5% of a particularlicensed frequency on band XX. Relative rules may include assignmentsbased on other devices in the area. For example, if 20% of a particularfrequency is available and other devices of particular types (e.g.,virtual machine servers running certain cloud-computing services) havealready been assigned spectra, then allocate at least 10% of aparticular unlicensed frequency on band YY. Conditional rules mayinclude assignments based on the current or future usage of availablelicensed and unlicensed spectra. For example, such conditional rules mayspecify that if the particular frequencies in the licensed frequencyrange are scheduled to be allocated for a certain group of devices 200(e.g., gaming consoles) but the devices 200 are not currently using morethan a threshold amount of the allocated spectra, then some of theunused, allocated spectra may be reassigned to other devices 200 in thearea. This allows unused spectra to be quickly identified and reassignedon an as-needed basis in order to maximize overall network usage.Reactive rules may include reassignment conditions for allocatingspectra based on the interference or degradation detected acrossparticular RF resources, allowing the spectrum manager 150 to quicklyreassign wireless devices 110-120 to clearer RF frequencies, channels,bands, etc.

Additionally or alternatively, the business rules 328 may also take intoaccount or consider the user type of particular devices 200. Devices 200that have historically used, or are currently or prospectivelyrequesting, more data than others may be allocated uncongestedfrequency, bands, or utilization ratios of RF spectrum. Particular RFspectrum may be reserved at different times and dates (e.g., duringhistorically high traffic times/dates) for devices 200 needing fastertransfer speeds. For example, telepresence applications that requirefast transfer speeds to stream video conferencing may be allocatedparticular portions of licensed spectrum during peak telepresence hours(e.g., from 10:00 am until 4:00 pm Monday through Friday on non-holidaydays).

Additionally or alternatively, the business rules 328 may consider theusage requirements of other wireless devices 200, either currently,historically, or prospectively. For example, if a large amount oftraffic is scheduled to use a particular frequency band at a certaintime, devices 200 requesting to use that band may be re-assigned to lesscongested licensed or unlicensed frequencies, bands, or the like. Inthis manner, the spectrum manager 150, in some examples, allocatesnetwork traffic to unused network resources while still being able tohandle inevitable traffic. Such traffic reassignment may be scheduledfor particular timeframes to allow traffic surges to dissipate beforethe devices 200 are migrated back to the originally requestedfrequencies, bands, or the like. Or such reassignment may be kept inplace until surges are detected to dissipate to particular normallevels.

As depicted, some of the wireless devices 110-114 in an area maycommunicate RF spectrum requests to the resource detector 310 of thespectrum manager 150 through intermediary network access devices 102a-n. The network access devices 102 a-n, in turn, individually relay oraggregate and relay the network requirements of the respectively managedwireless devices requesting network access in a given area. Additionallyor alternatively, other wireless devices 116-120 may be configured todirectly communicate RF spectrum requests to the resource detector 310of the spectrum manager 150. Thus, the resource detector 310 detects allthe cooperating and non-cooperating wireless devices 110-120 in thegeographic area, either directly (as shown by wireless devices 116-120)or through intermediary network access devices 102 a-n (as shown bywireless devices 110-114).

Alternatively, the network requirements of the wireless devices 110-120may be preset by the administrator 160 or an administrative device 336,through the admin interface 308. For example, the administrator 160 mayspecify that the projector 116 is always to be assigned to a licensedportion of RF spectrum or to particular RF bands that have a certainamount of free bandwidth. In this manner, the administrator 160 maycontrol spectra allocation of any of an enterprise's devices in thearea.

The network resources in the RF spectra requests of the wireless devices110-120 are stored in the memory 314 of the spectrum manager 150 aswireless resources 318, thereby indicating in real time the variousdevices needing network access in an area. Capturing all the RF spectrarequests of the wireless device 110-120—either directly or throughnetwork access devices 102 a-n—ensures the spectrum manager 150intelligently allocates RF spectra to devices that conventionally do notcooperate with each other.

Along with the detected wireless resources 318, the available spectrum316 identified by the spectra detector 306 or learned through parametersdesignated in the RF spectra requests and the spectra assignments rules320 (which include the business rules 328 and/or the manual allocations330 received through the admin interface 308) are stored in a database322 in the memory area 314. The spectra scheduler 324 generates aresource allocation schedule 326 specifying spectra assignments fordevices 110-120, and then provides the resource allocation schedule 326to the resource allocator 312 for actual device 110-120 RF assignments.In turn, the resource allocator 312 provides spectrum allocationassignments to the various wireless devices 110-120 in the given areathat allow the devices 110-120 to tune themselves accordingly.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart diagram illustrating a work flow 400 forimplementing effective spectrum allocation. Work flow 400 begins with aspectrum manager 150 waiting to receive network access requests fromwireless devices in a particular geographic area, as shown at decisionbox 402. The wireless devices may be cooperating or non-cooperatingdevices 200, and may be configured to broadcast their respective networkrequirements 222 to the spectrum manager 150 or to the network accessdevices 102 a-n, which in turn so-broadcast to the spectrum manager 150.In some examples, the spectrum manager 150 routinely, continually,periodically, or otherwise waits for network access requests from thewireless devices 200 in the area, as indicated by the NO path fromdecision box 402. The spectrum manager 150 identifies available RFspectra in the area and other connected wireless devices 200 thatcurrently have access to or have been scheduled for prospective to theavailable RF spectra in the area, as shown by boxes 404 and 406,respectively.

Once the available RF spectra and other wireless devices 200 areidentified, the spectrum manager searches internally for RF spectraassignment rules submitted through an admin interface 308, as shown atdecision box 408. The RF spectra assignment rules may indicate absolute,conditional, and/or relative rules for assigning wireless devices todifferent portions of RF spectrum. For example, rules may indicate thatall company telepresence devices are to be assigned to particularlicensed frequencies and at particular utilization ratios. If no RFspectra assignment rules relevant to the wireless device 200 submittingthe network access request exist, the NO path is followed whereby thenetwork traffic across portions or the entire available RF spectra aremonitored for RF spectrum that will serve the network requirements 218of the wireless device 200, as shown at box 412.

Based on either the RF spectra assignment rules (if any) or theidentified RF spectrum that fits the needs of the requesting wirelessdevice, a portion of the available RF spectra is allocated for thewireless device 200, as shown at boxes 410 and 414. The spectrum manager150 then notifies the requesting wireless device 200 of its allocated RFspectra, which allows the wireless device 200 to tune itself accordinglyfor data transmission.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart diagram illustrating a work flow 500 forimplementing effective spectrum allocation. Work flow 500 initiallybegins with a spectrum manager 150 waiting to receive network accessrequests from cooperating or non-cooperating wireless devices 200 in aparticular geographic area, as shown at decision box 502. In someexamples, the network access requests include designated networkrequirements 222 that include frequencies, bands, channels, timeframes,utilization rations (e.g., 30% utilization), or a combination thereofbeing requested by requesting wireless device 200. The wireless devices200 broadcast their respective network requirements 222 to the spectrummanager 150. In some examples, the spectrum manager 150 routinely,continually, periodically, or otherwise waits for network accessrequests from the wireless devices 200 in the area, as indicated by theNO path from decision box 502.

As shown at box 504, the spectrum manager 150 identifies availablelicensed and unlicensed RF spectra in the area. As shown at box 506, thespectrum manager also detects the network usage of such licensed andunlicensed RF spectra. The spectrum manager 150 decides whether therequested network requirements 222 in the network access request areavailable for allocation to the requesting wireless device 200, as shownby decision box 508. If so, the spectrum manager 150 allocates therequested RF spectrum to the requesting wireless device 200, as shown atbox 510. If not, the spectrum manager 150 reactively allocates differentRF spectrum to the requesting wireless device 200, as shown at box 514.The spectrum manager 150 notifies the requesting wireless device 200 ofthe allocated RF spectrum to use, so that the requesting wireless device200 can tune itself accordingly.

The network requirements 222 in the network access request, in someexamples, indicate particular RF spectrum that is being requested to beused by the requesting wireless device 200. For example, the networkaccess request may specify that the requesting wireless device wants touse 40 MHz of the 2.4 GHz frequency on channels 30 or 40 with autilization of at least 20%. The spectrum manager 150 checks to seewhether the requested network requirements 222 are available for therequesting wireless device, as shown at decision box 508.

ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Some examples are directed to a spectrum manager for allocating radiofrequency (RF) spectra comprising licensed and unlicensed frequencies towireless devices. The spectrum manager includes memory for storing adesignation of RF spectra assignment rules for assigning portions of theRF spectra to wireless devices in an area. The spectrum manager alsoincludes one or more processors programmed for: receiving RF spectrumrequests from the wireless devices in the area, the RF spectrum requestsindicating network usage requirements of the wireless devices,identifying the RF spectra available in the area, the RF spectracomprising at least one licensed frequency or at least one unlicensedfrequency, applying the RF spectra assignment rules to schedule anallocation of portions of the RF spectra to the wireless devices basedon the RF spectrum requests, and notifying the wireless devices of theallocation of the portions of the RF spectra to enable the wirelessdevices to efficiently use the portions of the RF spectra.

Some examples are directed to allocating RF spectrum to wireless devicesin an area by performing the following operations. Available licensedand unlicensed RF spectra are detected in an area. Current network usageis detected across a plurality of licensed and unlicensed frequencies inthe RF spectra. Requests for network access are received from wirelessdevices in the area. RF assignment rules designating conditions forassigning the wireless devices to portions of the licensed andunlicensed RF spectra are accessed, and the wireless devices areallocated to the unlicensed RF spectra in accordance with the RFassignment rules. A spectrum manager directs the wireless devices to usethe respectively assigned portions of the licensed and unlicensed RFspectra in accordance with the RF assignment rules, thereby enablingefficient usage of the licensed and unlicensed RF spectra.

Some examples are directed to computer-storage memory, which does notinclude carrier waves or propagating signaling, embodied withmachine-executable instructions for allocating RF spectra to wirelessdevices in a given area. The instructions are operable for: detectingcurrent network usage across a plurality of licensed and unlicensedfrequencies in the RF spectra; receiving requests for network accessfrom non-cooperating wireless devices in the area, the requestsrequesting access to particular frequencies, bands, or channels of theRF spectra; reactively assigning the non-cooperating wireless devices todifferent RF spectra portions than indicate in the requests based on thecurrent network usage; and directing the non-cooperating to userespectively the different RF spectra portions to for network access.

Alternatively or in addition to the other examples described herein,some examples include any combination of the following:

-   -   RF spectra assignment rules that are received from an        administrative device configured to automatically generate the        RF assignment rules without user interaction;    -   an administrative device configured to generate the RF        assignment rules based on current network traffic demands        detected on the at least one licensed frequency and the at least        one unlicensed frequency;    -   a spectra detector for detecting the at least one licensed        frequency and at least one unlicensed frequency;    -   a resource detector for detecting presence of the wireless        devices in the area; an admin interface configured for        presenting a user interface to an administrator, the user        interface enabling entry of the RF assignment rules;    -   assignment rules that designate particular types of the wireless        devices are to be assigned to dedicated portions of the at least        one licensed frequency;    -   RF assignment rules that include relative rules for assigning        spectra based on the network usage of the wireless devices;    -   RF assignment rules that include conditional rules for assigning        spectra based on the network usage of the at least one licensed        frequency and the at least one unlicensed frequency;    -   wireless devices that include at least two non-cooperating        devices;    -   wireless devices that include cooperating devices;    -   notifying at least one of the wireless devices of an allocated        frequency, frequency band, band width, or transmission time;    -   different RF spectra portions that include at least one        different frequency than indicated in the requests from the        non-cooperating devices;    -   different RF spectra portions that include at least one        different band or channel than indicated in the requests from        the non-cooperating devices; and    -   requests that include at least one request from a        non-cooperating device prospectively requesting future network        access.

While the aspects of the disclosure have been described in terms ofvarious examples with their associated operations, a person skilled inthe art would appreciate that a combination of operations from anynumber of different examples is also within scope of the aspects of thedisclosure.

Exemplary Operating Environment

Although described in connection with an exemplary computing device,examples of the disclosure are capable of implementation with numerousother general-purpose or special-purpose computing system environments,configurations, or devices. Examples of well-known computing systems,environments, and/or configurations that may be suitable for use withaspects of the disclosure include, but are not limited to, smart phones,mobile tablets, mobile computing devices, personal computers, servercomputers, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessor systems, gamingconsoles, microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmableconsumer electronics, mobile telephones, mobile computing and/orcommunication devices in wearable or accessory form factors (e.g.,watches, glasses, headsets, or earphones), network PCs, minicomputers,mainframe computers, distributed computing environments that include anyof the above systems or devices, and the like. Such systems or devicesmay accept input from the user in any way, including from input devicessuch as a keyboard or pointing device, via gesture input, proximityinput (such as by hovering), and/or via voice input.

Examples of the disclosure may be described in the general context ofcomputer-executable instructions, such as program modules, executed byone or more computers or other devices in software, firmware, hardware,or a combination thereof. The computer-executable instructions may beorganized into one or more computer-executable components or modules.Generally, program modules include, but are not limited to, routines,programs, objects, components, and data structures that performparticular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Aspects ofthe disclosure may be implemented with any number and organization ofsuch components or modules. For example, aspects of the disclosure arenot limited to the specific computer-executable instructions or thespecific components or modules illustrated in the figures and describedherein. Other examples of the disclosure may include differentcomputer-executable instructions or components having more or lessfunctionality than illustrated and described herein. In examplesinvolving a general-purpose computer, aspects of the disclosuretransform the general-purpose computer into a special-purpose computingdevice when configured to execute the instructions described herein.

Exemplary computer readable media include flash memory drives, digitalversatile discs (DVDs), compact discs (CDs), floppy disks, and tapecassettes. By way of example and not limitation, computer readable mediacomprise computer storage media and communication media. Computerstorage media include volatile and nonvolatile, removable andnon-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storageof information such as computer readable instructions, data structures,program modules or other data. Computer storage media are tangible andmutually exclusive to communication media. Computer storage media areimplemented in hardware and exclude carrier waves and propagatedsignals. Computer storage media for purposes of this disclosure are notsignals per se. Exemplary computer storage media include hard disks,flash drives, and other solid-state memory. In contrast, communicationmedia typically embody computer readable instructions, data structures,program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal such as acarrier wave or other transport mechanism and include any informationdelivery media.

The examples illustrated and described herein, as well as examples notspecifically described herein but within the scope of aspects of thedisclosure, constitute exemplary means for allocating licensed andunlicensed RF spectra to both coordinating and non-coordinating wirelessdevices. For example, the elements described in FIG. 3, such as whenencoded to perform the operations illustrated in FIGS. 4-5, constituteexemplary means for identifying available RF spectra and allocatingwireless devices in a given area to use the available RF spectra.

The order of execution or performance of the operations in examples ofthe disclosure illustrated and described herein is not essential, andmay be performed in different sequential manners in various examples.For example, it is contemplated that executing or performing aparticular operation before, contemporaneously with, or after anotheroperation is within the scope of aspects of the disclosure.

When introducing elements of aspects of the disclosure or the examplesthereof, the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” and “said” are intended to meanthat there are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising,”“including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean thatthere may be additional elements other than the listed elements. Theterm “exemplary” is intended to mean “an example of.” The phrase “one ormore of the following: A, B, and C” means “at least one of A and/or atleast one of B and/or at least one of C.”

Having described aspects of the disclosure in detail, it will beapparent that modifications and variations are possible withoutdeparting from the scope of aspects of the disclosure as defined in theappended claims. As various changes could be made in the aboveconstructions, products, and methods without departing from the scope ofaspects of the disclosure, it is intended that all matter contained inthe above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall beinterpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for allocating radio frequency (RF)spectra to wireless devices, the apparatus comprising: memory forstoring a designation of RF spectra assignment rules for assigningportions of the RF spectra to the wireless devices in an area; and oneor more processors programmed for: receiving RF spectrum requests fromthe wireless devices in the area, the RF spectrum requests indicatingnetwork usage requirements of the wireless devices, the network usagerequirements specifying target spectrum utilization at predeterminedtimeframes, identifying the RF spectra available in the area during thepredetermined timeframes, applying the RF spectra assignment rules toschedule an allocation of portions of the RF spectra to the wirelessdevices with the target utilization during the predetermined timeframesbased, at least in part, on the RF spectrum requests of the wirelessdevices, and notifying the wireless devices of the allocation of theportions of the RF spectra during the predetermined timeframes to enablethe wireless devices to efficiently use the portions of the RF spectra.2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the RF spectra assignment rules arereceived from an administrator.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein theRF spectra assignment rules are received from an administrative deviceconfigured to automatically generate the RF assignment rules withoutuser interaction.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein theadministrative device is configured to generate the RF assignment rulesbased on current network traffic demands detected on at least twodifferent frequencies of the RF spectra.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1,further comprising a resource detector for detecting presence of thewireless devices in the area, wherein the area is a geographical area.6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the devices comprise at least oneof a personal computer, a mobile tablet, a server, a virtual machine, agaming console, a projector, a television, or a security camera.
 7. Theapparatus of claim 1, further comprising an admin interface configuredfor presenting a user interface to an administrator, the user interfaceenabling entry of the RF assignment rules.
 8. The apparatus of claim 1,further comprising an admin interface configured that includes anapplication programming interface for providing the RF assignment rules.9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the RF assignment rules designatethat particular types of the wireless devices are to be assigned todedicated portions of the RF spectra.
 10. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein the RF assignment rules comprise relative rules for assigningspectra based on the network usage of the wireless devices.
 11. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein the RF assignment rules compriseconditional rules associated with the specified target spectrumutilization for assigning spectra during the predetermined timeframebased on the network usage of at least two different frequencies of theRF spectra.
 12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the wireless devicescomprise at least two non-cooperating devices.
 13. A method forallocating RF spectrum to wireless devices in an area, the methodcomprising: receiving RF spectrum requests from the wireless devices inthe area, the RF spectrum requests indicating network usage requirementsof the wireless devices, the network usage requirements specifyingtarget spectrum utilization at predetermined timeframes; identifying theRF spectra available in the area during the predetermined timeframes,the RF spectra; applying the RF spectra assignment rules to schedule anallocation of portions of the RF spectra to the wireless devices withthe target utilization and during the predetermined timeframes based, atleast in part, on the RF spectrum requests of the wireless devices; andnotifying the wireless devices of the allocation of the portions of theRF spectra during the predetermined timeframes to enable the wirelessdevices to efficiently use the portions of the RF spectra.
 14. Themethod of claim 13, wherein the target spectrum utilization comprises apercentage of an RF frequency band.
 15. The method of claim 13, whereinthe RF spectra assignment rules are received from an administrativedevice configured to automatically generate the RF assignment ruleswithout user interaction.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein theadministrative device is configured to generate the RF assignment rulesbased on current network traffic demands detected on at least twodifferent frequencies.
 17. The method of claim 13, further comprisingdetecting presence of the wireless devices in the area, the area being ageographic area.
 18. The method of claim 13, wherein the devicescomprise at least one of a personal computer, a mobile tablet, a server,a virtual machine, a gaming console, a projector, a television, or asecurity camera.
 19. One or more computer-storage memory embodied withmachine-executable instructions for allocating RF spectra to wirelessdevices in a given area, the memory executable by one or more processorsto perform steps comprising: receiving RF spectrum requests from thewireless devices in the area, the RF spectrum requests indicatingnetwork usage requirements of the wireless devices, the network usagerequirements specifying target spectrum utilization at predeterminedtimeframes, applying the RF spectra assignment rules to schedule anallocation of portions of the RF spectra to the wireless devices withthe target utilization and during the predetermined timeframes based, atleast in part, on the RF spectrum requests of the wireless devices, andnotifying the wireless devices of the allocation of the portions of theRF spectra during the predetermined timeframes to enable the wirelessdevices to efficiently use the portions of the RF spectra.
 20. Thememory of claim 19, wherein said spectrum utilization comprises athreshold percentage of an RF channel.